1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to a sulky, and specifically, to a sulky with steerable wheels.
2. Description of the Related Art
A sulky is used in a type of horse racing commonly referred to as harness racing, or more specifically, low-wheeled harness racing. In harness racing, a rider rides on the sulky. The sulky is harnessed to a horse, and the horse pulls the sulky around a track. The sulky is also referred to as a bike. The sulky includes a frame and first and second wheel supports each supporting a wheel. The first wheel support extends from the frame along a first axis. The second wheel support is spaced from the first wheel support and extends from the frame along a second axis.
In non-steerable sulkies, the first and second wheel supports are not steerable by the rider, e.g., the first and second wheel supports are stationary relative to the frame. In steerable sulkies, the first wheel support is rotatably coupled to the frame about the first axis and the second wheel support is rotatably coupled to the frame about the second axis. In other words, the first and second wheel supports are independently rotatable about the first and second axes, respectively.
A non-steerable sulky is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 6,247,711. The sulky includes a frame and first and second wheel supports pivotally mounted to the frame at a pivot connection. A wheel is rotatably mounted to each of the wheel supports. The wheel supports are configured to pivot around the pivot connection upon the exertion of a sideways displacement force at the wheels. In other words, the wheel supports freely pivot relative to each other.
One drawback to such a design is that the rider is not in control of the pivoting wheel supports. In other words, when the wheels are subject to a sideways force, such as from traversing around a bend, the wheels pivot and move. As a result, the driver has no control over the direction of the sulky. Such drawbacks are eliminated by steerable sulkies.
A steerable sulky is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,817,975 to Saraydar. Specifically, Saraydar discloses a frame including a first shaft, a second shaft spaced from the first shaft, and a cross-member coupled to the first and second shafts. A first pedal is opertatively coupled to the frame and a second pedal is operatively coupled to the frame. The first pedal is moveable relative to the frame for selectively rotating the first wheel support relative to the frame about the first axis. Likewise, the second pedal is moveable relative to the frame for selectively rotating the second wheel support relative to the frame about the second axis. As such, the first and second wheel supports are independently steerable relative to the frame.
With such a design, the rider has difficulty controlling the rotation of one of the wheel supports relative to the other wheel support. In other words, when the wheels are subject to a sideways force, such as from traversing around a bend, the wheel supports rotate relative to each other. In such a situation, the wheel supports may each rotate in different directions thereby compromising the stability of the sulky. In other words, the sulky bounces and skids or even flips over if the wheel supports are rotated in different directions relative to each other. The difficulty for the rider arises in that the rider must monitor the rotational position of both wheel supports and rotate each wheel support accordingly to avoid compromising the stability of the sulky. Further, the rotation of the wheel supports relative to the frame may be impacted based upon conditions at the track. If the ground is particularly sloppy or muddy, the wheels may be subjected to sideways forces even though the sulky is being pulled straight. In other words, mud forces the wheel supports to rotate relative to each other and the rider has difficulty maintaining the rotation of the wheel supports relative to each other.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to design a sulky that allows the person riding the sulky to steer the sulky while avoiding the disadvantages associated with wheel supports that rotate independently relative to each other.